Cole, Bouknight, Martin, Polley, Whaley

[Kenny11]

This has to be the starting lineup going forward right?

Surrounding Bouk with the best 3 point shooters we have plus Whaley is our most dangerous group possible with the best spacing on offense...and Martin is such a good rebounder that it isn't necessary to start another traditional big next to Whaley.
Defenses are going to be very physical with Bouknight and double him on ball screens so having spacing and shooting on the court is so important.

Martin played great against DePaul and Polley played great against Marquette. If they can both play solid in the same game so will be so hard to guard.

The only concern is when Gaffney and Adams come in and the offensive firepower goes down considerably.

 

[Rico444]

This has to be the starting lineup going forward right?

Surrounding Bouk with the best 3 point shooters we have plus Whaley is our most dangerous group possible with the best spacing on offense...and Martin is such a good rebounder that it isn't necessary to start another traditional big next to Whaley.
Defenses are going to be very physical with Bouknight and double him on ball screens so having spacing and shooting on the court is so important.

Martin played great against DePaul and Polley played great against Marquette. If they can both play solid in the same game so will be so hard to guard.

The only concern is when Gaffney and Adams come in and the offensive firepower goes down considerably.

We have a very good defensive team that has a superstar on offense and then a bunch of good players that can have nights where they step up or nights where they don't do much. I think because of that, the formula for success is going to change every night. Martin was the guy that stepped up against DePaul, Whaley/Polley against Marquette, Carlton was that dude against USC, etc.

 

[Kenny11]

Yeah, we definitely can't expect everyone to put up stats all the time. Hurley will have to go with whoever is hot and away from whoever isn't playing well from game to game. I just think that the cole, bouk, martin, polley, whaley lineup is the best lineup to start for spacing and firepower.

 

[Chin Diesel]

I still like starting Sanogo. They are giving him a bit of the Tyler Olander treatment. He starts, gets a few looks on offense to get the post game going and then he doesn't play much after the first TV timeout of each half. Basically gets the start until first big sub and one more 2-3 minute run each half unless there is foul trouble.

I don't mind bringing a player like Polley off the bench. Do I think he is good enough to start? Absolutely. But, if he can continue to score from off the bench that gives Hurley more scoring options when Bouk gets his rest time. It's becoming painfully clear this team struggles to find an offensive rhythm when Bouk takes a seat for the first time each game.

 

[RichZ]

Martin and Polley starting together, or even playing more than situational spot minutes together is very unlikely. Whichever one of them is coming off the best practice will start, and game minutes will be decided on the fly, based on performance. That will get even more complicated When Akok returns. Until then, either Josh or Adama will start next to Whaley.

 

[awfuldan]

I think this should be the closing line-up, but I definitely think it makes sense to start big with Sanogo or Carlton. Insulates Whaley from foul trouble a bit and allows us to switch it up with some firepower off the bench. We’re so deep at the center spot too, makes sense to play those guys together for a bit when we can.

 

[MexicoHusky]

At this point I have pretty high confidence in the coaching staff to play whoever they want. They seem to know what they are doing. For instance, I didn't think there was a ton in the first half that suggested Polley was going to go off like he did in the 2nd. Some on this board thought he was moving better in the first half, but I didn't really notice. Anyways, not my point. Hurley had insight from practice that we don't have. Apparently Polley had a few nice practices before the Marquette game. Hurley gave Polley the minutes and the rest is history.

 

[Palatine]

I still like starting Sanogo. They are giving him a bit of the Tyler Olander treatment. He starts, gets a few looks on offense to get the post game going and then he doesn't play much after the first TV timeout of each half. Basically gets the start until first big sub and one more 2-3 minute run each half unless there is foul trouble.

I don't mind bringing a player like Polley off the bench. Do I think he is good enough to start? Absolutely. But, if he can continue to score from off the bench that gives Hurley more scoring options when Bouk gets his rest time. It's becoming painfully clear this team struggles to find an offensive rhythm when Bouk takes a seat for the first time each game.

I agree. This is a great way break in Sanogo. And if he picks up an early full or two it is much less harmful than Whalley or Carlton getting in foul trouble. The more minutes we can give Sanogo, the better off we will be later in the season.

 

[Chin Diesel]

I think this should be the closing line-up, but I definitely think it makes sense to start big with Sanogo or Carlton. Insulates Whaley from foul trouble a bit and allows us to switch it up with some firepower off the bench. We’re so deep at the center spot too, makes sense to play those guys together for a bit when we can.

Big thing you have to worry about with Martin in at the end is his FT shooting.

 

[Deepster]

Just reading to this point in the thread, my thoughts are:

a) It's a nice problem to have that we can talk about a ton of different combinations
b) It's something Coach and the staff need to figure out or it could lead to inconsistency game to game.

I feel like, in a normal world, with traditional practices/games/travel/etc, we'd be a little farther along at this point so maybe it'll just take a little more time.

 

[UConnSwag11]

Polley doesn't rebound

 

[elmcityboy]

Polley doesn't rebound

martin and whaley are two of the best rebounders in the conference and uconn is the second best rebounding team overall.

 

[CL82]

Polley doesn't rebound

3.2 per game. . 5 less than Sanogo.

 

[Palatine]

Polley doesn't rebound

Not surprising as he spends most of his time outside the three point line. But he is still averaging over 3 a game in 16 minutes, that is 8 every 40 minutes. He could rebound more if they had him playing closer to the basket but he is just too valuable on the perimeter.

 

[BuffaloHusky]

I think Bouk and Polley need to play more often together as it allows Bouk more driving lanes to the hoop. Simultaneously, it also helps Cole and Gaff with driving lanes when Bouk and Polley are in together.

 

[Scrappy3]

This has to be the starting lineup going forward right?

Surrounding Bouk with the best 3 point shooters we have plus Whaley is our most dangerous group possible with the best spacing on offense...and Martin is such a good rebounder that it isn't necessary to start another traditional big next to Whaley.
Defenses are going to be very physical with Bouknight and double him on ball screens so having spacing and shooting on the court is so important.

Martin played great against DePaul and Polley played great against Marquette. If they can both play solid in the same game so will be so hard to guard.

The only concern is when Gaffney and Adams come in and the offensive firepower goes down considerably.

100% no brainer
Im not worried about bringing anyone along--only worried about winning. Winning solves everything. Polley deserves 30 minutes and to start and finish games. This line up gives Whalley and Boughknight much more space.

 

[NJHusky]

I think Bouk and Polley need to play more often together as it allows Bouk more driving lanes to the hoop. Simultaneously, it also helps Cole and Gaff with driving lanes when Bouk and Polley are in together.

If Polley Cole and Bouk play together, who are the scorers when they are out together?

 

[Get a Job]

You don't sit them all at once, dopey!

(I don't really mean to be so rude. I just think it's funny to call people dopey. No offense.)

 

[Chin Diesel]

If Polley Cole and Bouk play together, who are the scorers when they are out together?

Last 5-7 minutes of the game they all need to be on the court, but for rest of game you are correct. There needs to be a balance and rotation of the scorers.

 

[dannyHAM]

IF Akok comes back and is just what he was last year (Hoping he improves a bit throughout the year, but obviously difficult coming off injury) THEN I would love to see this line up: Cole, Bouk, Polley. Akok, Whaley. What a force that would be!

 

[HooperScooper]

Just reading to this point in the thread, my thoughts are:

a) It's a nice problem to have that we can talk about a ton of different combinations
b) It's something Coach and the staff need to figure out or it could lead to inconsistency game to game.

I feel like, in a normal world, with traditional practices/games/travel/etc, we'd be a little farther along at this point so maybe it'll just take a little more time.

Exactly. Hurley even mentioned this as an issue. Usually through 6 games they'd still be in the middle of the out of conference portion of the schedule playing mostly cupcakes where Hurley could play around with lineups to see what works.

"We've missed a lot of time," coach Dan Hurley said after his team's first Big East win. "These guys have missed practice, they've missed games. It's going to take awhile for us to get comfortable. We just hope we're fortunate enough here. Since the summer, we've only had three players get COVID, so we've been really, really disciplined and we've had really, really bad luck with when it's happened for us.

"If we can just get games and get practices and actually get into the season like everyone else is, I think this team can be really good."

"Because of everything we've missed during the summer and preseason and the secret scrimmages and the exhibition and then all the non-conference games, we're just learning on the fly how to use him (Martin) and where he can be effective."

UConn men are still engaged in the learning process

The start of the men's college basketball season is more memorable for what's happened off the court rather than on it for the UConn Huskies. They've had six games either postponed or canceled, played...

www.theday.com

 

[RichZ]

Polley doesn't rebound

This is a list of how many minutes of court time each player (this year's games only) goes between rebounds. (avg minutes per game /avg rebounds per game)
Obviously, a couple of these guys, the sample size is too small to be valid. Otherwise, we ain't playing Springs enough! (his # comes from 3 boards in 4 total minutes)

Cole 19.9
badams 10.2
Gaff 9.5
BOUK 6.2
Andre 5.5
polley 5.2
josh 3.6
whaley 3.4
Sanogo 3.2
Martin 3.15
Brown 2.0
Springs 1.3

Obviously, Martin is our best rebounder. Cole may be allergic to rebounding. Polley's size says he should be compared to the bigs, but his game is on the perimeter, so hybrid?

 

[BrassBonanza]

If Polley Cole and Bouk play together, who are the scorers when they are out together?

I think this is something that Coach needs to be thoughtful about. Last game aside - when Bouk is on the bench Uconn had some really bad periods vs both Creighton and USC. Clearly that is bound to happen but I think Danny needs to maximize the rest of the players on the floor when Bouk is out. I don't think the full on 2nd team approach is a good one at all.

Ideally you could play like this when Bouk is out - i think that group could have scoring and spacing to not let the offense drop off a cliff.

Gaff
Cole
Martin
Polley
Whaley


I do not like when Bouk and Cole are on the bench together which seems to happen a fair amount (Gaff/Adams is not a great guard combo).

 

[RichZ]

Big thing you have to worry about with Martin in at the end is his FT shooting.

Seems like he either hits them all or misses them all, or he doesn't get fouled. Actually he doesn't get fouled enough to get a handle on his FT shooting. In 5 games, he's been to the line 10 times ... 2/0, 2/2, 4/4. 0/0 and 2/0.

 

[bendm]

3.2 per game. . 5 less than Sanogo.

but polley is averaging .5 rebs fewer in almost 7 more minutes/game

if it ain't broke dont fix it. this lineup is winning. our bread and butter is rebounding and defense.

i think sanogo stays in the starting lineup if/until akok comes back. then whaley shifts to C.

polley makes for a great 6th man. he's the only guy equipped to consistently give us points off the bench.

 

[ucawn]

Cole may be allergic to rebounding.

He’s a point guard. He won’t get offensive boards because he’s the guy who needs to stop transition attacks. If you’ve realized from the games, Cole in DePaul was back in transition D and drew a charge to get the ball back.
Also he’s gotten some BIG rebounds namely USC... no one else on the floor could get one USC got like 3 shots up. Please

 

[MexicoHusky]

This is a list of how many minutes of court time each player (this year's games only) goes between rebounds. (avg minutes per game /avg rebounds per game)
Obviously, a couple of these guys, the sample size is too small to be valid. Otherwise, we ain't playing Springs enough! (his # comes from 3 boards in 4 total minutes)

Cole 19.9
badams 10.2
Gaff 9.5
BOUK 6.2
Andre 5.5
polley 5.2
josh 3.6
whaley 3.4
Sanogo 3.2
Martin 3.15
Brown 2.0
Springs 1.3

Obviously, Martin is our best rebounder. Cole may be allergic to rebounding. Polley's size says he should be compared to the bigs, but his game is on the perimeter, so hybrid?

Very good data. The Martin stat definitely aligns with the eye test. Impressive actually. Polley lines up sorta where you'd expect. With the guards. But leading the guards. Maybe you could argue his number should be in the 4s.

 

[RichZ]

He’s a point guard. He won’t get offensive boards because he’s the guy who needs to stop transition attacks. If you’ve realized from the games, Cole in DePaul was back in transition D and drew a charge to get the ball back.
Also he’s gotten some BIG rebounds namely USC... no one else on the floor could get one USC got like 3 shots up. Please

So is Gaffney 9.5
So was Gilbert 7.8
So was Bazz 8.6
So was Rickey Moore 10.1
So was Taliek 9.1

19.9 is indicative of more than position.

 

[TheChamps990411]

We have a very good defensive team that has a superstar on offense and then a bunch of good players that can have nights where they step up or nights where they don't do much. I think because of that, the formula for success is going to change every night. Martin was the guy that stepped up against DePaul, Whaley/Polley against Marquette, Carlton was that dude against USC, etc.

Its funny though because if i had never seen Uconn play id of thought Polley was the guy and easily one of the best players in the country. I really wonder what hes capable of doing consistently. Is he a 15-5 a night guy? Or is he a guy thatll just be an on or off player? If he is the ladder this team becomes a serious problem for the rest of the big east and come tourney time with the way this team is rebounds and is starting to play defense you dont want to see them in your region if youre among the top seeds.

 

[Huskyforlife]

I can't believe we're arguing about Polleys rebounding. Imagine Martin is the 4 in that lineup, rebounding isn't an issue. Making sure our offense doesn't drag until 12 minutes in is a bigger priority.